🐧 Linux Command Cheat Sheet: Essential Commands with Examples

Linux is a powerful operating system, and its command line is the key to unlocking its full potential. Here's your Linux command cheat sheet with examples and a touch of fun 🎉 using emojis for easier navigation!

1. 📂 File and Directory Management

📜 List Files

ls 

• List all files in a directory.

Example:

ls -la 

• -l: Detailed listing
• -a: Include hidden files

🚪 Change Directory

cd <directory> 

Example:

cd /home/user/Documents 

• Move to the "Documents" directory.

📁 Create a Directory

mkdir <directory_name> 

Example:

mkdir my_project 

🗑️ Remove a File or Directory

To remove a file:

rm <file> 

Example:

rm example.txt 

To remove a directory:

rm -r <directory> 

Example:

rm -r old_directory 

📋 Copy Files

cp <source> <destination> 

Example:

cp file.txt /home/user/backup/ 

✂️ Move or Rename Files

mv <source> <destination> 

Example:

mv old_name.txt new_name.txt 

2. 📝 File Viewing and Editing

👀 View File Contents

cat <file> 

Example:

cat /etc/passwd 

📖 Page Through File

less <file> 

Example:

less largefile.log 

✏️ Edit Files

nano <file> 

Example:

nano notes.txt 

• Open the "notes.txt" file for editing in Nano.

3. 👥 User Management

🔄 Switch Users

su <username> 

Example:

su root 

👤 Add a New User

sudo useradd -m <username> 

Example:

sudo useradd -m alice 

Set a password for the user:

sudo passwd alice 

🗑️ Delete a User

sudo userdel <username> 

Example:

sudo userdel alice 

4. 🔐 Permissions

🛠️ Change File Permissions

chmod <mode> <file> 

Example:

chmod 755 script.sh 

• 755: Owner can read/write/execute; others can read/execute.

🙋 Change File Ownership

sudo chown <user>:<group> <file> 

Example:

sudo chown alice:users file.txt 

5. 🌐 Networking

🌍 Check IP Address

ip addr 

📡 Ping a Host

ping <hostname_or_ip> 

Example:

ping google.com 

⬇️ Download a File

wget <url> 

Example:

wget https://example.com/file.tar.gz 

6. 💾 Disk and System

💿 Check Disk Space

df -h 

📊 View Disk Usage

du -sh <directory> 

Example:

du -sh /var/log 

🚀 Monitor System Processes

top 

• Real-time view of system processes.

🧠 Check Memory Usage

free -h 

🔄 Reboot or Shutdown

Reboot:

sudo reboot 

Shutdown:

sudo shutdown now 

7. 📦 Package Management

📥 Install a Package (Debian/Ubuntu)

sudo apt install <package> 

Example:

sudo apt install curl 

🧹 Remove a Package

sudo apt remove <package> 

Example:

sudo apt remove apache2 

📈 Update System

On Debian/Ubuntu:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade 

8. 🔍 Searching and Grep

🔎 Find Files

find <directory> -name "<file_name>" 

Example:

find / -name "*.log" 

📂 Search Text in Files

grep "<text>" <file> 

Example:

grep "error" /var/log/syslog 

9. 📦 Archiving and Compression

📦 Create a Tar Archive

tar -cvf archive.tar <directory> 

📂 Extract a Tar Archive

tar -xvf archive.tar 

💨 Compress Files

gzip <file> 

Example:

gzip logs.txt 

10. ⚡ Miscellaneous

📍 Print Working Directory

pwd 

⏱️ Check System Uptime

uptime 

🧹 Clear Terminal Screen

clear 

Suggestions From comments by @schelp :

• ls

ls -ltrha (to bring the lastest files/dirs that had modifications. 

• cd "", to enter in directories with that had an space into their names, like:

cd "/home/schelp/my files" ls -ltrha "/home/schelp/my files" 

• df -h (known a little bit more of the filesystem used, maybe its a good idea)

df -Th 

One of the shortcuts that I like is: @schelp

• to clear the terminal screen

crtl + l 

Suggestion from comment @xinitd :

• Change directory ownership recursively:

chown -R user:froup /path/to/directory 

• Just add executable flag to file

chmod +x /path/to/script.sh 

Conclusion

🎉 Mastering these commands will make your Linux journey smooth and efficient. From file management to networking, this cheat sheet covers essential tasks.

Do you have a favorite Linux command that isn’t here? Share it in the comments below! 👇

Written by: @eshanized
Contributor 1: @schelp
Contributor 2: @xinitd